Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2008, published 98th ILC session (2009)

Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81) - Panama (Ratification: 1958)

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in reply to its previous comments and also the annual report of the National Labour Inspectorate for September 2005–August 2006 and the attached tables of statistics. It also notes Act No. 24 of 2 July 2007 amending Act No. 9 of 1994, which establishes and regulates the administrative career system; Executive Decree No. 2 of 15 February 2008 issuing regulations on safety, health and hygiene in construction; Executive Decree No. 15 of 3 July 2007 on urgent measures to reduce occupational accidents in the construction industry; and Executive Decree No. 31 of 12 May 2008 amending Executive Decree No. 21 of 2 April 1997 establishing the Inter-Institutional Technical Committee on Occupational Health, Hygiene and Safety.

Article 6 of the Convention. Status of labour inspectors. According to the Government, the majority of inspectors in the National Labour Inspectorate have been appointed on a permanent basis. Out of a total of 136 inspectors, 19 are fully integrated into the administrative career system, 45 will be admitted in the near future as a result of their evaluations, another 61 are in the process of being evaluated, one inspector has appealed against the decision excluding him from the administrative career system, another has been appointed on a temporary basis and only nine inspectors are not eligible in terms of the required conditions. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on changes in the numbers of inspection staff and also on any measure taken or contemplated to increase the numbers of career inspectors. It would be grateful if the Government would also provide further details on the status of employees who have been carrying out inspection duties on a temporary basis for a number of years.

Articles 3, 5(a), 10 and 16. Geographical distribution of labour inspection staff and the exercise of their duties. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes that, of the 136 inspectors in active service, 80 are assigned to the central office in Panama City, the others being divided among 12 regional directorates, but that there are no data on the geographical distribution of workplaces liable to inspection, the most recent information relating to their sectoral distribution dating from 1999. The Committee emphasizes that it is impossible to gain a clear picture of whether human resources match inspection needs in view of the lack of up to date statistics on the number, nature, size and geographical location of workplaces liable to inspection and also on the number and diversity of categories of workers employed in these establishments. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take measures to ensure that in future such data can be collected, made available to the labour inspectorate, particularly with the cooperation of other public or private bodies or institutions holding them, and included in the annual inspection report.

The Committee notes that the dissemination component of the “Cumple y gana” project for the reinforcement of labour rights in Central America includes the design, production and dissemination to enterprises of a “self-evaluation form” relating to labour rights and obligations. According to the Government, this form is a new and effective means of making employers aware of workers’ rights and shedding light on the application of labour legislation in a participatory manner. It is a simple tool which enables employers to check the degree to which important provisions of national legislation are enforced within their enterprises. It is also useful for labour inspectors but in no way relieves them of the need to undertake inspection visits. The Committee requests the Government to supply information on the impact of the use of the “self-evaluation form” by enterprises on the number, duration and effectiveness of inspection visits and also information on labour inspectors’ assessment of the veracity and relevance of information entered in this document by employers.

Articles 3, paragraph 1(a), 17 and 18. Targeted inspections: Migrant labour and mining. The Committee notes that the tables of statistics communicated by the Government and those contained in the annual report of the National Labour Inspectorate for the period September 2005–August 2006 contain a section relating to migrant labour. In Panama City, the number of inspectors dealing with this area increased from three in 2002 to five in 2006 and the number of inspections rose from 609 to 1,425. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide further details of the precise purpose of these targeted inspections, the procedures governing them, the reason for their increase and also their results in relation to the protection of the rights of migrant workers while engaged in their work.

However, the Committee notes with concern that, according to the annual report for 2005–06, no inspections have taken place in the mining and quarrying sector. It draws the Government’s attention to Article 16 of the Convention in relation to the frequency and quality of inspections that are necessary to enforce the legal provisions relating to conditions of work and the protection of workers while engaged in their work. It also emphasizes the particular importance of ensuring a stronger labour inspection presence in relation to workplaces and activities entailing a high degree of risk, such as mining and quarrying. The Government is urged to take steps to ensure that mines and quarries will be the subject of close inspection as regards conditions of work in general and conditions of occupational safety and health in particular, and that relevant statistics will be communicated in the Government’s next report.

Articles 5(a), 13 and 14. Prevention in relation to safety and health; notification of industrial accidents and cases of occupational disease. The Committee notes the ratification of the Safety and Health in Construction Convention, 1988 (No. 167). It also notes with interest the adoption of the Regulations on safety, health and hygiene in the construction industry, sections 7 and 8 of which define the preventive aspects of the role and duties of the labour inspectorate, and also the creation of a post of occupational health delegate in the construction industry by Executive Decree No. 15 of 3 July 2007. The duties of this official include informing the National Labour Inspectorate of the Ministry of Labour of any deficiency or anomaly which might entail risks to health and safety; ordering the partial or temporary suspension of work entailing such risks until those risks have been eliminated; submitting such a suspension order to the labour inspectorate for approval and submitting a monthly report concerning industrial accidents and diagnosed cases of occupational disease. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information on the practical application of both these texts, their impact on improving the planning of labour inspection activities in the construction sector and the results achieved in terms of the stated objective of risk prevention.

According to the Government, the Inter-Institutional Technical Committee on Occupational Health, Hygiene and Safety is contemplating measures, in the context of the modernization of state institutions, including the Ministry of Labour, guaranteeing labour inspectors access to information so that the labour inspectorate can fulfil its preventive task. The Committee notes with interest that, according to section 3(5) and (6) of Executive Decree No. 31, it is the task of the abovementioned Committee to establish: (i) means of cooperation and coordination between the various state bodies responsible for occupational safety and health matters; (ii) an information system for drawing up technical standards; (iii) a system of inspection in the area of safety and health and a system of statistics relating to safety and health. The Committee also notes that it is planned to ask the ILO to organize a workshop on the registration and notification of industrial accidents and cases of occupational disease for all institutions involved in these matters in order to facilitate the establishment of an information network. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the legal and practical measures taken to ensure that labour inspectors are informed of industrial accidents and cases of occupational disease occurring in the industrial and commercial workplaces under their supervision. The Committee expresses the firm hope that the Government will take the necessary steps to obtain the requisite ILO assistance and requests it to provide information on any development regarding the implementation of the planned measures to improve occupational safety and health.

Article 11. Strengthening the resources and transport facilities of the labour inspectorate. The Committee notes with interest that, as part of the implementation of the “Cumple y gana” project, a computerized information system relating to labour inspection has been established in the offices in Panama City and the extension thereof to provincial departments and regional offices started recently. The Government also indicates that a massive information campaign on workers’ rights has been conducted with the distribution of leaflets, radio programmes, and the creation of a website on labour legislation; conciliation and mediation mechanisms have been strengthened within the Ministry; and labour inspectors have been provided with computers, printers and communication equipment and also with training in the use of the equipment. The Government also indicates that the National Labour Inspectorate has been provided with mopeds and 11 vehicles for the inspectors’ exclusive use, thereby facilitating, according to the Government, their access to urban and rural areas. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would supply information on all developments in the implementation of the “Cumple y gana” project and on progress made in terms of the objective of the Convention and in particular on the geographical distribution of resources and transport facilities for inspectors for travel in the performance of their duties.

Labour inspection and child labour. The Committee notes the plan for 2007 in connection with the implementation of the National Plan 2007–11 for the elimination of child labour and the protection of young workers. With regard to labour inspection, it notes that the number of inspection visits decreased considerably, from 317 in 2004 to 122 in 2006. The Government reports on steps taken to obtain the necessary funds for the implementation of the country programme to combat the worst forms of child labour and hopes that, with the increase in the number of labour inspectors, the coverage and effectiveness of labour inspection in this area can increase. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on all progress made in the implementation of the abovementioned programme and plan relating to labour inspection activities. It would also be grateful if the Government would continue to supply statistics of inspection visits relating to child labour, disaggregated as far as possible by region or province, and also on offences reported and penalties imposed and enforced.

Articles 20 and 21. Annual inspection report. The Committee notes the report of the National Labour Inspectorate for the September 2005–August 2006 period. The Committee notes that it does not contain any statistics on penalties imposed, and that statistics on industrial accidents and cases of occupational disease relate only to Panama City. The Committee hopes that the Government will take steps, in relation to the “Cumple y gana” project for the reinforcement of labour rights in Central America, to ensure that the central inspection authority publishes and communicates to the ILO an annual general report on the work of the inspection services under its control, in the form and according to the deadlines prescribed by Article 20 and containing the information required by Article 21(a)–(g).